IS Virus: Episode 9 -Immunodeficiency-
by tonbonkittybon
Summary: The virus slowly takes its toll on the world, as Japan pools in all its resources to try and put the renegade down. Well, they've found him, and now it's time for him to pay for screwing with the world. With the rest of the world watching to see if the terror will finally meet its end, the dysfunctional family that is Phantom Task will be put to the test.
1. Queens of Secretdom

_IS Virus Episode 9: Immunodeficiency_

 _Part 1: The Queens of Secretdom_

 **-TOKYO DISNEYSEA, CHIBA PREFECTURE, JAPAN-**

It's been a week since the renegade successfully launched two consecutive attacks on the Shibuya prefecture. Amidst the helter skelter atmosphere, people everywhere have been trying to find ways to escape the world. Among them Squall and M, who split from Autumn and the renegade until they were sure of a plan of attack. They retreated from the public eye and followed it to Japan's aquatic version of Disneyland. You would think that the flying roller coasters and color filled sky would take anyone out of the harsh reality.

But Squall and M had their ideas of the perfect renegade, and he turned out to be the exact opposite. So, his influence followed them. They came in heavily disguised as normal people, but everywhere they went, they imagined Sokoto ripping off his disguise and doing himself in the moment.

Squall could see it all. They rode along a tour boat, he would ride with the dolphins. They zipped through the roller coasters, he would be clinging to her side crying for auntie, while Madoka would cover her ears with someone else's loose change. They sat down in a corner to eat, he would gather a crowd of laughter from reducing himself to the local idiot. They watched the World of Color atop their resort balcony, he would dare them to reenact the famous Titanic hip-hold.

Needless to say, their day was...partially fulfilling.

In their room, Madoka hugged her knees, watching the fireworks light up the sky. With each color that exploded, her eyes glittered more and more, until the finale where she walked over to the railing and sat down to watch her emotions wage war against each other in the night sky.

Squall emerged from her shower buck naked and saw Madoka doing something she never saw her do during their service in Phantom Task. She walked towards the curtain, "He did a number on you, too?"

"Unfortunately..." Madoka blindly muttered. She winced and swerved her head to see what ticked her off. It was Squall in a see-through curtain.

"The hell did those scars come from?" She asked.

"You needn't concern yourself with that," Squall said, dazed at the fireworks display.

Madoka blushed before turning back to the fireworks, "Who said I was concerned?"

"Or chatty?" Squall said at the conclusion of the fireworks show, ruining the moment.

Madoka angrily punched the floor and walked off, "Tch...I'm going to find Dory."

"For the fifth time today?" Squall said with a cheeky loud voice.

"F*** OUT, B****!" Madoka slammed the door out.

Translation: she's gonna find Dory's entire family! Whatever that means...

"Oh, he's infected us, alright..." Squall sighed as she closed the door. She then stretched herself on the bed. letting her scars feel the piercing relief of the air conditioner's cool breeze. The pain wasn't as intense as during the Gospel breakout, so she could begin to recover her movements a little bit. She rolled over and felt a sharp pain where her nipples should have been. She gritted her teeth and endured the grueling back stretch before rolling on her back.

Right now, she didn't want to think about anything except her own death. Only now does she envision the faces of those she targeted in the past, the destruction her ruthless battles have caused, wondering what changed her harsh interior. Call it a bad case of simochi, but it's all the renegade's fault. And hers. She reached into her bag and opened a locket.

"S*...the picture's burnt..." she cursed.

Out in the park, Madoka stood in front of the Finding Dory entrance. For the fifth time. And she doesn't know why, but just the mere mention of an amnesiac, good-natured ocean dweller looking for her long-lost family captivated her since this morning. And she came back to relive the story. She took five steps through the tunnel when the lights came on. The room revealed an aquarium come to life, as if the ocean's inhabitants would be directly interacting with her. She walked into a giant room that simulated a small coral reef. Blue ocean waves on the ceiling, algae and jellyfish on the walls, and the entire reef and sea life materialized occupying the open space. Fish swam across the room, playing with the sea plants. A few swam past Madoka, fluttering her hair. She stared at the endless blue and the ever flowing current-

"Hi again!" TALKING FISH I'M HALLUCINATING HELP!

"YOW!" Madoka fell back. It took her a moment to recognize the fish as Dory, "Man, these damn projectors-"

"Who you calling a projector, M?" Dory got up in Madoka's face, "If that is your name. Speaking of, what's your name?"

"Uh...I thought you knew..." Madoka muttered.

"Really?" Dory swam through her body, "I could've just sworn you're another tiny timantha!" What the... "Oh, well!" She then swam through and pointed deeper into the aquarium, "So, I hear this is your fifth time traveling to-" low dramatic voice, "The reeeeeeeef..."

"Uh, yeah?" Madoka scratched her head.

"Well, there's a special surprise waiting for you, Manny!" Dory popped into her eyes, "And it's right there!"

Madoka stared at the wall revealing a hidden entrance to what sounded like a water slide. "Isn't that the exit?" She nervously asked.

"Well, they're all exits, lady," Dory said, swimming to the entrance, "It's what's between them that counts the most." Dory then called to a whale in her famous whale-talk language, and she heard a response, "See? Nothing but a really long undertow current! Come on! What are you waiting for?!"

Madoka nodded, then warily stepped towards the slide in rhythm with the "Just Keep Swimming" cheer, trying to ignore the giant blue dot spinning around her hair. She stopped in front of the giant slide. She stared at it, then back at Dory, who gestured her to hop in and ride the way down. She knew the projectors never acted like this; they were off their program, meaning that she was either being tracked or being led to a journey even worse than the family-friendly Soap Land. She closed her eyes and jumped in, and Dory followed her down the unusually fast current.

"S****************************************************!" Well, if they couldn't find her before, they can now...

"I KNOW!" Dory threw her arms up, "ISN'T THIS FUN?!"

"F***ING WHAT?!" Madoka was scared for once. Someone messed with the AI programming in this ride, but who? Maybe she wouldn't be able to find out, because through the twists and turns, and the sudden army of krill pelting Madoka's face-

"WHALE!" Dory pointed to a giant whale swooping in to eat them. Madoka shrieked and flailed around, trying to escape the slide, but the whale came in and "ate" them. Then a splash stopped the noise.

"HAAAHAHAHAHAA!" Dory laughed, "You should've seen the look on your face! You were all, HELP! HELP M-" Madoka squashed the little fish, but it popped its eyes from her hands, "Um, I'm a 'projection,' remember?"

"Get off!" Madoka swatted Dory, but her hand just phased through.

"Told ya," Dory said before pointing down below, "Anyway, we're here!"

"Where's here?" Madoka said before the scene revealed itself as the Great Barrier Reef. Madoka sat up and took in all its beauty.

Dory swam to Madoka's head, "AND HERE WE ARE IN-" low dramatic voice "the reeeeeeeef...Come on, let me show you around!"

"Show me-how am I supposed to walk around?!" Madoka pointed to her slide.

"Oh, right," Dory faux-pondered, "Well, I'll just point to everything and you'll see it all...here!" A giant screen appeared on the rails, to give Madoka a first person view of whatever Dory is pointing at, and there was a lot. While she recounted-STRUGGLED to recount her adventures with Marlin and Nemo, Madoka was taken aback by how all the sea animals could live with each other and the environment in harmony. She listened in on the tales of Nemo's rescue mission and Dory's search mission, but most of her attention was focused on the bustling sea life, and how they could all play along without fighting. She even saw goldfish and their parents, who were comforting a daughter when she was hurt.

"So, that's why you traveled down here five times," Dory devilishly interrupted Madoka's awe-moment.

"Hey, buzz off, pea-brain!" Madoka swatted the fish away.

"Boy, do you have issues," Dory commented, "And here I was just talking about the famil-" then stopped. She saw the look on Madoka's face when she saw Nemo and Marlin with Crush and Squirt. She saw her lose it when Dory's parent's waved to Madoka. She slowly patted her shoulder, "You still haven't found yours...?"

"I did..." Madoka squeezed the words through her tears, "But...but they cast me aside...and...threw me out..."

"No..." Dory tried to comfort her, "No they didn't..."

"But they did!" Madoka screamed, "Ichika, and...and Chifuyu...and...Mom and Dad...and...and all the others..." and lost it once more.

"Ichi...wait, I'm not talking about them!" Dory corrected her, "I'm talking about you and the renegade!"

"Huh..." Madoka slowly lifted her eyes, "How'd you know about the renegade?"

"Hey, it's amazing what the people who come in here talk about," Dory wafted in orbit of Madoka, "Renegade this, renegade that, destruction, obstruction, it goes on and on. I've even seen a few videos of you in action." She waved her fin, and projections of the battles across Japan lit up in front of their faces. For some reason, they were all the times when the trio protected the renegade, and that one time when the renegade tried to protect all three of them. Madoka stared long and hard at the videos, finally realizing why she wasn't so murderous 100% of the time. Dory's eyes popped through a screen, "Why else would've you shield him from that attack? Or that one? Or that one-no, that was him protecting you, I think-ANYWAY!"

Dory took all the screens down, "Sure, you lost a family, but you got another one!" Screenshot of the renegade carrying Madoka through the forest, "Through him. Well, you were always together, but it didn't feel like a family until he butt in, I bet."

Madoka looked back and forth at the screenshot, then Dory. As much as she hated to admit it, Dory was right. The renegade wasn't being the renegade because he was never the renegade at all. Just a kid who annoyed her to the breaking point, yet always shoved his life into her and ran forward to take the first hit. Kinda like a good little brother...

She smiled non-threateningly. Dory smiled back.

"So, I guess this means you're gonna tell on me, huh?" Madoka said.

"Tell who?" Aaaaaaaaaaaand memory loss, "I just saw that cute widdle smile of yours is so cuuute!"

"Dude, no," Madoka swatted Dory away again, but Dory latched onto her hand.

"Come on, brace yourself!" Dory shouted, "It's time for the departure!"

"Depa-HUH?!" Madoka remembered seeing it on a TV screen. Dory and Marlin rode a current on the way to find Nemo, "Wait, no I'm not ready!"

"Of course you are!" Dory said before she left the current.

"But-" Madoka shouted over the rising noise of the current, "What do I do if I can't find my way home?!" Clearly, the seawater got to her head.

"Like I always said!" Dory screamed as Madoka entered the current to take her out of the attraction, "JUST KEEP SWIMMIIIIIIIIIIIING!"

"DOOORRYYYYYYYYYYY!" Madoka lost herself in the final stretch to the exit. She was taken out of the reef and into an exit current, that was faster and more nauseous than the initial stretch. But this time was different. She was determined to keep her family, no matter how deranged of how broken it was, or how worse it could be. She regained her composure and tucked herself in. She slid down faster until she saw a light at the end of the drop. She waited until she was on the straight-down, then made her move.

"TIME OFF, BLACK KNIGHT!" she deployed her IS and busted out of the tunnel, and into the night sky. With no time to waste, she activated her IS tracker. There were no dots within 10 miles of her. She connected to her GDS private comms channel.

"Squall?" Madoka said.

"Let me guess," Squall smirked.

"We gotta find him," Madoka blasted off.

"Try to keep up."

Madoka looked up and saw the Golden Dawn literally a mile ahead of her.

 **-SUICIDE FOREST, MOUNT FUJI-**

Autumn was gathering firewood for tonight's dinner. She tried to get her mind off of the fact that the supposed punishment for Sokoto was nothing more than pleasurable playtime-

"RRAAAAAAAAGH!" she threw the wood down and made a mini crater, "How could I let myself get caught up in that...that...AAAAAAAAAGH!" She snapped an oak tree in two, "I'll get you for this..." She regathered the wood and stormed towards the cabin. She heard some racket, thinking that the spirits came back to torture him more. She smiled as she moved closer, the noise growing louder, and when she kicked the door-

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" A giant musical wave pushed her back. She gripped the door and grunted her way in.

For some unexplainable reason, Sokoto and Silver were rocking out to "World is Mine."

And thus was the scene for the last week. Autumn subjects Sokoto to a punishment, it becomes pleasure for both of them, and Silver comes back to lend a song.

"He ain't normal..." Autumn grunted, "Biological IS? But then he can use an Is, so he ain't a bio-IS either..."

"Hey, Autumn!" Sokoto ran up to her and yanked her in, "You're just in time for the final chorus!"

"Let go, runt!" Autumn tried to pull away, but today he was stronger than usual.

"Come on! Where's that feisty aura you had a while ago?! Hey, turn it up, Silver!" Sokoto pushed Autumn into the chorus, while he and the Gospel rocked the air guitar. Apparently, she had it worse, because her aura changed in an instant. She decided to screw everything and get lost in the music. The trio played their heart out all the way to the end, because what else could they do to ease tensions between the world and each other?

Once the song was over, Sokoto hooted and high-fived Silver, who hid her wings and crushed a fuel cell with her hand, at the same time Sokoto slammed a branch on the floor.

Autumn was about to join the celebration when she realized what she was doing. "Ok, hold it!" she panted, "What the hell are we even doing?!"

"What else?" Sokoto piped, "We're singing our cheers to the spirit people!" Autumn blanked out, so he had a most idiotic explanation, "Well, the haunted spirits seem to enjoy it, and it is fun to scream your lungs out, so I figured why not?"

"Were you dropped?" Autumn sarcastically asked. She never thought that a penis pipsqueak would wear her out in one week. She just wanted some time to meditate on her pending revenge scheme. But that would never come to-

"Hey, renegade!" Squall's voice came through Silver's wrist, "You're not dead, are you?"

"Squall!" Sokoto leaped, "Where are you?"

Then they heard a knock at the door. Silver scanned the entrance and showed 3D projections of the Golden Dawn and the Black Knight. Sokoto ran towards the surprisingly warm auras.

"Squall! Madoka!" He jumped into Squall's arms, "It's been too long!"

"Same here, little hero!" Squall cuddled him before noticing Autumn's menacing gaze, "So, how much trouble was he?"

"Not as much trouble as I will put you in," Autumn growled, "And that's saying a lot."

"Calm down, pipsqueak!" Madoka shoved her heel into his head, "I'm not as grabby feely as you!"

"Why?" He squeaked, "What's a hug between friends done you wrong?!"

"Um, Sokoto?" Squall tapped his shoulder and calmed him down, "Mind if I have a private chat with Anna and Madoka?"

"Uh, sure..." Sokoto said, taking note of the solemn aura surrounding Squall. He motioned Silver to follow him out and shut the door.

Finally, Squall gathered the remaining Phanton Task members to the middle of the room and huddled them together.

"What's this all about?" Autumn demanded, "I thought we had a deal."

"Well, it just expired," Squall whispered, "because before midnight tonight, I will die."

"Huh?" Both Madoka and Autumn stepped back.

"It's true," Squall explained, "I saw the evening news. The Chinese, German, and Japanese forces have pinpointed the Suicide Forest, the one location no woman wants to go to, that's where they think the renegade is hiding."

"How?!" Autumn said, "We had a perfect cover! How were they able to find him?!"

"Because they grew a brain," Madoka butt in, "Japan isn't safe anymore. We have to get out."

"Lady, where on earth is safe?!" Autumn grew desperate, "I didn't come all this way just to push some daisies!"

"And we still have yet to retrieve the Silver Streamline," Squall added.

"The hell are you so obsessed with that Mecha Vocaloid ripoff?!" Madoka demanded.

"It's not exactly man-made, ok?" Squall sheepishly answered.

"The f*** does that mean?!" Autumn is got angry, "What aren't you telling us?!"

Outside, Sokoto is trying to listen in on the conversation. Silver knelt down and just stared at him. She tugged on his shorts.

"I don't know what they're saying," he whispered, but they don't have very optimistic auras."

Silver cocked her head sideways.

"Oh," he explained, "Ever since I stayed the night with someone, I had this weird thing where I can feel someone's emotions. Handy for visual spying, but not good for audio spying. Can you get through to them?"

Silver shook her head, showing three PRIVATE CHANNEL screens and a radar of the area. Silver saw three green dots, and a blue dot.

Five seconds later, 20 red dots, five on each cardinal direction.

Silver flicked Sokoto's hair twice, which to him, translated to certain death.

The three women heard something outside. Then, they heard a "We got trouble!" and a blast off. They were startled and went outside to check out the commotion.

Right above them, witnessing Sokoto and Silver protecting the Suicide Forest from 20 IS pilots.


	2. The Promised Time

_Part 2: The Promised Time_

 **-EARLIER, IS ACADEMY-**

"Maya, you have to let me go in," Ichika griped, "That little sucker's already demoralized three of my friends!"

"I would if I could," Maya clacked away at the computer, "but the entire world is on edge since the Prime Minister's bombastic message. Imagine when they see you stepping in to save the day! They'll defund the Academy!"

"Tabane can create anything we need out of thin air!" Houki said, "We need to make sure the Academy is still here, and right now we aren't sure of anything anymore!"

"I understand, I really do," Maya said, "but until the situation simmers down and it is safe to remind them that you saved the world before, we have to keep you here."

"Wonderful..." Houki threw her arms behind her head and left.

"Oh, boy..." Ichika ran after her, "First the dojo, then the renegade, now this...what else could happen?"

Well, a bunch of kids with wooden swords could stampede you.

"ORIMURA SENSEI! SHINONONO SENSEI!" The kids cheered and ran to hug them.

"Hey!" Houki screamed, "What are you all doing here?!"

"How'd you even get on a boat?!" Ichika asked.

"We came as soon as we saw that Chinese lady get beat by the renegade!" A little boy said, "So I rallied all the students to stop everything and come help you!"

"And when my parents wouldn't let me take my brother, I fought them hard!" A teenage girl proudly proclaimed, "We all gotta stick together, y'know!"

"You fought..." Ichika face palmed, knowing where that "everyone stays together" came from.

"Selflessness has its limits..." Houki growled at him.

"Why haven't you two gone off to fight?" A kid asked.

"Well, the renegade destroyed this place when we weren't here," Ichika explained, "so we have to stay here just in case."

"Are you gonna reopen?" A girl asked, "I got top marks on the compatibly test and the entrance exam!"

"Maybe," Houki said, "If we can get a green light."

"We'll get it for you!" The girl exclaimed, "come on! Let's reopen the school!"

"Waitnodont-" too late, Houki. They already ran off to tell the lady in black. "Oh, dear..."

"So," Ichika peeked over her shoulder, "shall we move the dojo to here?"

"And do what?" Houki said, "No way they'll let them bunk here. If only their parents taught them the truth..." The couple watched as the little tykes stood their ground against Chifuyu. They would've been able to admire their tenacity a bit longer...

"THE RENEGADE HAS BEEN FOUND. ALL AVAILABLE FORCES TO THE SUICIDE FOREST IMMEDIATELY."

...were it not for the sudden red lights flashing across the campus.

"Uh-oh..." Ichika muttered.

"Everyone listen up!" Houki shouted and pointed, "Kendo training resumes in that building over there!"

"COMING, SENSEI!" The kids stopped everything and ran after Houki.

"Um, that's the...upperclassmen dorms...oy vey..." Ichika shook his head and walked past the frenzied staff running to their stations, "And why do I feel dropping everything and going to hibernate forever?..."

"Probably 'cuz your hunny decked you in the socket one too many times!" a cheery voice suddenly snapped him out of the daze.

"What?! It's nothing like that, Rin!" Ichika instinctively snapped back before taking it back, "Wait...Rin? Is that really you?"

"The one and only!" she responded before she was cut off by an ally channel.

"Show respect for whom you speak with, filthy peasant!" Xingjia screamed.

"You should follow your own advice," Lingyin stately stated, "He is a big time IS pilot, who led the fight to save the world, might I remind you."

"Save the world!" Xingjia protested, "He is nothing more than a commonplace dirty rag-"

"So was I, before you shoved me into the Presidential Suite," Lingyin snapped.

"I have done more for you than and man ever could!" Xingjia begged.

"Really?" Lingyin winked, "Then what'd you do during the attack on the Third Mondo Grosso?"

Xingjia clammed up.

"Heheheh," Lingyin grinned, "Now be a good girl and leave this channel to the real heroes."

Xingjia disconnected.

"Now then," Lingyin changed the topic, "I know what you're thinking, and all I can say is, you're an adult now. You can make your own decisions and no one can stop you. Wanna go be a tragic hero? Do it. Just stop worrying about everyone you see. It's unbecoming of you."

"What about Xingjia and the kids?" Ichika scratched his head.

"It's ok," Houki invaded the channel, "I got the hold on these kiddos."

"Yow!" Ichika yelped, "When did you sneak into the conversation?"

"Since these annoyances wouldn't stop asking about you," Houki opened the visual cam, "so I told them you're off to catch the renegade."

"Ooooh," Lingyin cooed, "Pressure, pressure!"

"You are going out, are you?" Houki asked ahead of the kids cheering, "FIGHT-O! FIGHT-O!"

"*SIGH*...Yeah, I'm coming," Ichika patted his bracelet. The kids cheered for their hero.

"Ichika, if you're late, you're cleaning up their mess," Houki said before disconnecting.

"Pre-marriage life, huh?" Lingyin quipped.

"You have no idea," Ichika said.

"We're on our way to the Suicide Forest," Lingyin briefed, "Join us in the fight as soon as you see red." She sent the coordinates and disconnected.

"Well, old friend," Ichika whispered, "Looks like the world is about to get screwed." The bracelet hummed. "Couldn't have said it better myself," Ichika ran along the path and swung himarm downward, "Ok, Byakushiki! LET'S FLY!"

He deployed his IS right in the middle of the crowd and took off for Mt. Fuji, "Sorry to leave y'all hanging, but I got a score to settle!" he idiotically shouted before he IB'd out of the Academy.

Chifuyu saw the fledgling and tried to stop him, but one of her staff held her shoulder, "No. This is his test. He has to do it on his own."

"Are you kidding me?!" Chifuyu shouted, "Since when has that dunce been able to do anything on his own?!"

"Since he swore to change the relationship from where he has to be protected to where he is protecting," the staff woman answered, "Or have you forgotten?"

"Miss Orimura!" Maya ran up to them, "We have to get him back! Who knows what he'll-"

"Let him go, Yamada," Chifuyu cut her off, "If he wants to die, let him." She turned back to the classroom building.

"But doesn't he need backup support?" Maya stammered, "A life line? Anything?!" She ran after her to try and figure out what happened between her and the little brother.

Out in the blue void, Ichika twirled a few times, blissfully appreciating every breath of fresh air he inhaled. "Rowdy kids, I can handle," he said to himself, "Maniacal homicidal maniacs, I can handle. Endless women every single day...no way." He saw a radar showing the entire of Fuji city, with an unhealthy number of blue dots headed towards the center.

"So, she's recruited even more women..." he said, "Guess that means we gotta let loose, huh?"

 **-FUJI CITY HALL, SHIZUOKA PREFECTURE-**

"I simply don't understand why we have to have a filthy man ape tag along with us..." Xingjia muttered.

"One: his IS has a one-hit kill one-off ability," Lingyin lectured, "Two: he never split up the group to get two of his own killed. Three: It was women who threatened the world in the first place, dumbass."

"And it was the men who created the situation," Xingjia turned away, "Do you find the wisdom to see that the path I proposed is the right one?"

"If we even get the chance," an officer noted.

"Not to worry," Lingyin brought up the radar, "I've radioed everyone in the prefecture. We're all set to strike."

 **-GOTEMBA RESTAURANT-**

"The intel better not be wrong..." Clarissa huddled with her fellow army women, "If there's one thing I can't stand, it's the putrid stench of death..."

"Commander, please," a servicewoman muttered, "We are in public..."

"Screw everything!" She vehemently whispered, "I will not be hanged for some petty Grudge!"

"Then, I have some unfortunate news for you," an IS pilot was showing a message sent by Golden Dragon, "It's time to mobilize."

"Yeep!" Clarissa yelped and ran out of the restaurant. She screamed and deployed her IS, "Listen up, everyone! We're going in, and we're not leaving until the renegade is dead! Do not allow them any ground in the cursed forest! Do I make myself clear?!"

"Jawhol!" the service women shouted and stood at attention.

"Good! Now get going!" Clarissa pointed to the mountain, and all servicewomen ran out and deployed their ISs into the sky. She waited until they were gone to groan loudly.

"The first solid lead for a sneak attack..."she shook her head, "WHYYYYYYYYY..." and took off.

The only thing that gave her any relief is that there's more company on the way. A total of 20 pilots will engage the renegade. On their way to their target location, she saw more brigades of pilots ready to take down their greatest threat. She was about to wave Lingyin hello when-

"We got trouble!"

That all too familiar voice boomed out of the forest. And arose from the dried leaves a seraph of unholy light.

"Of course..." she muttered.

There he was. The renegade, piloting the Silverio Gospel in its 2nd Shift.

He said nothing. He simply waved his hand downward and let loose a, "BIG BANG WING OUT!" A tiny laser fired from his wings and into a pilot behind him. From the point of impact, a huge explosion, a bomb that caught that group of pilots. They shook it off, but lost a third of their shield energy.

"Just so you know," he shouted, "she's suped up to the level of a 5th Generation IS!" He unsheathed his sword and shield, "I hope the rest of you do not disappoint me!"

"So," Xingjia growled, "you are the one who incapacitated Lady Huang..."

"Xingjia," Lingyin said, "Let's think about-"

Too late. Without thinking, Xingjia immediately charged at him and swung down her greatsword hard on his shield. He used the impact to loop over the blade and land a harsh strike on her jaw. His wings fired two lasers on opposite sides. The pilots dodged them and moved in to strike.

"The one time I chose not to lose my cool..." Lingyin prepared her Shenlong for mid-range combat, "Everyone go now!" Her unit moved in as she provided cover fire.

The renegade kept pace with the onslaught, dodging and blocking as needed, "Not yet, Silver. We do it now, we're sitting ducks later. Besides," he looked down momentarily at the cabin entrance, at three shocked faces staring back at them, "It's us they want, not them." He kept up the evasion tactics, repeatedly coming down to block some shots aimed at the cabin. He continued to hold back his own strikes, despite aggravating yet cringe-worthy insults. Until he saw an opportune moment with three very familiar faces.

"YOU WRETCHED CHIMPANZEE!" The rich women charged at him, and he just took it. He allowed the strike to penetrate his barrier, crashing him down in the forest floor.

Unfortunately, they never learned. One hug of the wings was all it took. They stood frozen in time, while their most hated enemy stood tall, within the cockpit.

"And three strikes the dress," he said with the altered voice, "You know how long I've been waiting to put you down?"

"Why...can't I...move?!..." one of the women struggled.

"You're stuck like that until I say you can go," Sokoto boomed, "and you ain't going alive!" The cockpit released.

"You're kidding me..." the leader whispered, "I'm going to die by the hands of a flea-ridden penis monkey-"

Sokoto punched her gut, "Get a dictionary!" He bounced off and went on a two minute tirade, kicking and punching every one of their orifices. When he finally went back and released them, they fell unconscious.

"That's weird," he muttered, "I's expecting the other yahoos to pummel me by n-" He sensed three auras scattered across the sky, blasting everything and everyone in their path. One of them crashed into the cabin.

"Why there?!" He screamed.

"I'm sorry!" Squall sarcastically said, "It was full of bad juju! I hate bad juju!"

"Ain't you bad juju incarnate?!" Sokoto snapped.

"Hey, dick magnets!" Autumn screamed threw her moth gust, "Get up here and help us!"

"We can't hold them off much longer!" Madoka yelled, bursting her Twin Lance lasers to max power, but not hitting her intended targets.

"Leave the small fry to me!" Squall rejoined the group, "Go after the big three!" She fired her lance rifle at the other pilots.

"Whaddaya think we've been doing?!" Madoka and Autumn continued to fight off Lingyin, Xingjia, and Clarissa, who was still squirming due to the interference of the forest.

"Can we just leave now?!" Clarissa screamed as she froze Autumn in place.

"And abandon ship?! No way!" Lingyin blasted down Autumn, but Madoka was able to sneak behind and strike her. Xingjia rammed Madoka and bombarded her with rockets, but Autumn blew the impact off with a powerful gust. Lingyin and Clarissa fired a combo blast towards the two. Madoka and Autumn withstood the entire attack, but Xingjia was able to get behind them and position herself for a massive blast.

"This is for allying with that flea-bad renegade!" Xingjia charged in bazookas ablaze. But she was repelled in the nick of time by Sokoto's shield, which blocked the rockets and knocked her off course. The shield, and Xingjia, came back to him.

"You will know your place, yellow mop!" She screamed.

"Not on your life, PAGAN OCTOPUS!" Sokoto thrust the tip of the sword into her blind spot and sent her back a hundred feet, "Boo-yah! Critical hit!" Followed by a beat down strike thanks to Squall crashing several pilots into each other and blasting them to smithereens.

Meanwhile, Ichika remained hidden beneath the forest rubble.

"Wow...the renegade's strong..." he whispered, "I gotta be a hundred and twenty percent right off the get go." He held his bracelet to his eye, "Whaddaya say? 2nd Shift start?"

Xingjia burst from the debris, shrieking her lungs out.

"Whoa," Lingyin twitched, "Who shoved a butt plug up your pee hole?..."

"I want his head served to the pigs is all," Xingjia growled.

"Stay focused," Clarissa regrouped with Lingyin and Xingjia, "We may have exhausted their energy, but it's still a three on four battle."

She was right. There they were, a hundred feet above ground, staring down the renegade and Phantom Task. A team battle of untold consequences. They all gripped their triggers, preparing for the final charge when-

"Nah, it'll be an even 4-4 pretty soon," Sokoto blurted out.

"What?" Clarissa turned to her teammates, "What does he mean?"

"I mean, you're hiding someone below that wood, pagan woman!" Sokoto pointed to the destroyed cabin.

"You had to make it weird," Ichika muttered.

"Laura's intel was correct," Clarissa grimaced, "He does have extra sensory abilities..."

"I know someone is down there, waiting for me to get completely invested in you three bung holes," Sokoto taunted, "but it ain't gonna work! I'll deal with him myself!"

"Are you sure?" Madoka asked.

"Positive," Sokoto reassured his team, "And if you get overwhelmed, just call me and we'll swap out. Cool?"

"Uhh..." Madoka blushed. Since when did the most vile criminal in Japan look so cool?! Clearly, she must've eaten something.

"Cool," Squall said, "Go get 'em, tiger."

"Right then," Sokoto said and dropped to ground level. Autumn could not believe how much he and Squall connected. Madoka was still recovering from the sudden suaveness.

Opposite to them, Xingjia, Lingyin, and Clarissa prepared for their final charge.

Sokoto landed and pointed his shield at the rubble.

"Oh boy," Ichika said, "I think that's the signal."

"Show yourself, coward!" Sokoto blurted, "Come out and fight me like a real man!"

"Oh no," Lingyin groaned, "Everyone go!"

"Here they come!" Autumn refocused the point of her vengeance on the task force.

Ichika let out a wicked grin, "CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!" He unleashed Byakushiki's 2nd Shift and IB'd right at Sokoto, who prepared his sword to strike at Ichika's head.

Instead, their blade tips connected at Mach speed, and a giant rainbow shockwave emitted from the resultant force.

"WITH HIS SWORD?!" Ichika said, "HOW?!"

"I IMMEDIATELY REGRET THIS!" Sokoto shouted.

At the same time, the two teams collided. Lingyin clashes with Madoka, Xingjia with Squall. Clarissa couldn't get a grip on Autumn because Autumn used a gust-laser combo to blow her back and blast the entire crowd. With Clarissa hit, Autumn continued her onslaught, leaving the others to deal with her mess.

On the ground, the swords' energy caused an explosion which sent them back several feet. Ichika skidded to a safe stop. Sokoto rolled upside the head.

"That was on purpose!" He yelled as he rolled back on his feet.

Ichika wondered what kind of opponent he was fighting. On the news, the renegade was a vicious mass murderer, but here, he's just a really strong kid.

"CHARGE!"

A really strong kid who has to be put down!


	3. Knighty-Knight, Knight Owls!

_Part 3: Knighty-Knight, Knight Owls!_

 **-IS ACADEMY-**

The entire campus was on edge. Maya and Tabane have projected visuals of the battle for all to see. And so far, they are seeing a surreal deja vu fight. The Byakushiki has fended off the Silverio Gospel before, but only after entering its 2nd Shift, and with an entire team behind its back.

But now, it must fend off an upgraded Silverio Gospel by itself. With its 2nd Shift already kickstarted.

"Did you see that?..." Maya trembled, "How he countered that strike with ease?..."

"And that was the One-Off Ability, too," Tabane gritted her thumbnail, "The hell did that kid do to the Gospel?!"

"Did you get the enemy data?" Maya asked.

"Already done!" Tabane said, "I'm putting it on the screen!"

Out in the courtyard, everyone was staring at the fight. They saw the dizzy movements Phantom Task and Lingyin, Xingjia, and Clarissa made. It was going to be a close fight, to say the least.

But the renegade...no one wants to say it. It's possible that he will win, but barely.

"The screens on the campus have been updated with energy gauges of each combatant," Maya said, "Now we will know for sure who will win this."

"I dunno..." Tabane muttered, "the kid's not using the giant wing blasteroos..."

"Is he toying with us?" Maya asked.

"Better not be..." Tabane growled.

Houki and the kendo kids were watching the fight in the residence lobby.

"GO, GO! ICHIKA! GO, GO! ICHIKA!" the kids cheered on. Houki just stood in silence. She came to calm the crowd down, but watching everyone cheer on the fight just made her sick. Don't they know that this is life or death?

Probably not, or maybe they don't care. They just want the tension in their minds put to rest. Without thinking about who could see her message, she took out her phone and texted to the Shenlong, "You and Ichika better come back to me! -H"

Maybe that was a good thing. This fight was being broadcast throughout Japan via pilot cam from the Shenlong and Byakushiki. They instant the people saw Houki's message, they took to social media, storming the web with comments not caring who is fighting, just that the renegade is brought down. The entire country cheered for a victory.

 **-SUICIDE FOREST, MOUNT FUJI-**

That couldn't have come at a much better moment than now. Lingyin was twirling around the Shinomure's wind blades when she read Houki's message.

"Don't worry, Grumpy Ribbon!" She threw her double-bladed staff, "We're all coming home!" Direct hit on Autumn. "Xingjia, you take M! Leave insect lover to me!"

"Why you two tailed snake!" Autumn released a giant gust towards Lingyin.

"It's two tailed FOX!"Lingyin endured the wind and swung at Autumn, who was able to catch the blades, "Get it right!" But she blasted the Ryuhou at point blank range.

Madoka threw one of her lances at Autumn, who caught it just in time to block Lingyin's strike. But now, she is short one blade, giving Xingjia a wide opening. She let it threw and plummeted to the ground, only for her to shove Xingjia down in the dirt first. She escaped before Xingjia recovered, and they went on a wild mountain chase.

Clarissa, on the other hand, was struggling with Squall. Mostly because Squall reeked of the same stench of death as the rest of the forest.

"What's wrong?" Squall taunted, "No fight today?"

She got her on the edge of insanity. "Please," Clarissa tried to play cool, "this forest is far beneath my worth of time..." Oops.

"Oh, I got the boring one," Squall activated her IS's One-Off Abilitiy, which involved changing the shape of her IS, which made Clarissa freak out.

 **-TOKYO HOSPITAL-**

Which made Laura head butt her own pillow.

"Once I return to Germany," she muffled, "I am burning all of your manga!"

 **-ODORI PARK, HOKKAIDO PREFECTURE-**

The crowd was at a frenzy. They were witnessing the battle of a lifetime, a man fighting for the women of Japan. To many, this is a first.

"Why's a guy fighting on our side?" Someone asked.

"Because he has a bit of sense," someone answered, "unlike the renegade."

"They're both worthless!" Someone blurted out, "Why don't they just both die already?!"

"Then the government would go back to normal," someone said, "and we'd all be stuck in our boring day jobs."

"What's it to you?!"

"Ask them."

She pointed to the crowd that was cheering for Ichika.

"Ugh...you're kidding me!"

"Nope. Now, pipe down and enjoy the show."

 **-KANAGAWA PRINCE HOTEL, KANAGAWA PREFECTURE-**

"Hey, I know that guy!" a waitress called out to the tv, "It's that street rat traveling with that woman!"

"I seen him too!" Someone else said, "Should've known he was up to no good sooner!"

"Why didn't we deal with him before this mess started?!" someone else shouted, "Kick him to the curb already!"

And just like them, the country was set ablaze, unable to escape the fervor that was the battle.

 **-SUICIDE FOREST, MOUNT FUJI-**

Ichika and Sokoto kept their fight fierce and relentless, but it was kept to the ground. Silver learned its lesson from last time and sealed off the wings, leaving Sokoto with little choice but to rely on his weapons. But they were more than enough to counter every strike that came his way, even managing to get one in the head.

No matter how close Ichika got in Sokoto's face, he couldn't land a solid blow. It was always evaded or blocked. If this keeps up, it will end in a stalemate, and the renegade will escape again.

"Gotta end this now!" Ichika said, "Back up and use the blasts!" He flew past the renegade and fired from the left hand, circling around as he searched for a weak point.

Through a circle with an arrow pointing to the center, Silver alerted Sokoto to what Ichika was planning. "Let him come," he said, "but not at the core!" Silver flipped a middle finger.

Ichika continued to fire until he saw an opening on the left lower back. "Now!" He triggered the Ignition Boost and zipped straight into the renegade, piercing through his shield and pushing them through the forest.

"It's over!" Ichika yelled, "I have you now!"

The sword nicked its way into Sokoto's rib cage.

"Do you?" Sokoto smirked.

And right then, Ichika caught on. The sword was too far extended to take it back in time. The clear energy wings burst out and enveloped Ichika.

Within the wings, he was frozen, staring up at the very angel deciding his judgement.

"Well, aren't you a tough cookie," Sokoto said, "Thought you could sneak up on me and get away?"

"That was kinda the point..." Ichika said.

"Well," Sokoto waved his hand out, "You should be able to endure this!"

Instead of releasing Sokoto from the cockpit, Silver charged the walls with pure energy and sent several powerful lasers towards Ichika. Ichika grit his teeth, preparing to take the full force of the attack. Yet, somehow, he was able to form a shield in front of him and block all forward damage altogether. Same can't be said about his back, though. By the time the wings released him from the sub space, he hunched over like an old crank.

"Pbbttaahahahaaa!" Sokoto laughed, "So that's why Silver kept me in the VIP Box!"

"Oh, shut up, renegade!" Ichika shot back, "I'd like to see you fight with a back rash!"

"Oooh, look at me!" Sokoto imitated, "I'm the King of Brokeback Mount-agh..." Very quickly, he realized why Silver didn't release him for hand-to-hand. That trap he placed required a complete opening as bait. And by the looks of Ichika's swift recovery and sudden rush, it didn't go as planned.

Xingjia, who was struggling to hold back Madoka's strikes, saw the whole thing. She could not believe that she fought him with all her strength and she couldn't pin him at all. And yet, a male, the "inferior being", did what she could not.

"No!" She said, "I was supposed to wound the renegade! Not him!" That earned her a blast from Madoka's lance.

"Autumn, she's getting angry!" Madoka radioed.

"Rrgh! I don't have time for the likes of you!" Xingjia yelled.

"I see her!" Autumn used this as a chance to try a trap of her own. She dropped her guard and purposefully took the brunt of Lingyin's Ryuhou.

"Huh?" Lingying stopped, "Why would she-DUDE!" Her blast sent Autumn on a collision course towards Xingjia, who was making a beeline for the renegade, "Xingjia, look up!"

The trap was already in motion. Autumn released her energy wing blades on Xingjia. Xingjia guarded in the nick of time, but did not see the lance strike her blind spot and throttle her with an energy blast. Madoka slammed down on Xingjia and bombarded her with everything she had. Autumn saw Squall coming and threw her the lance to her. Squall let it slip past her and shove into Clarissa, who stood dazed long enough for Squall to pelt her with a gatling blast.

Through his scuffle with Ichika, Sokoto glanced at Autumn, who had yet to shake Lingyin off her tail. "Autumn, catch!" He threw his sword to her just as Lingyin struck. The weapons clashed, and Autumn used the sword to push Lingyin back and give herself a fighting chance.

And not two seconds after throwing the sword away did Sokoto and Silver witness the many advantages of fighting with just a lightweight shield. They moved faster than ever, block easier, and because the shield is attached to the arm, they have two free hands, meaning double the maneuverability, and double the fist pump. Enough to land a few solid blows on Ichika.

But they realized the disadvantages too, like shorter range of attack, and less power. And it didn't take long for Ichika to overwhelm them both.

"Hey!" Squall shouted, "He needs help!"

"Madoka, trap them!" Autumn tossed her back her lance.

"Follow my lead!" Madoka readied her twin blades, "Squall, stay with Autumn! I'll tag the renegade! Mark your targets now and stay on them!"

"Since when did they learn how to teamwork?!" Xingjia raged, "AND WHY IS THIS FOR THE RENEGADE?!"

"Never you mind, Major..." Clarissa mumbled, "We're all low on energy..."

"Then, we have to finish this now!" Lingyin readied her weapons, "Scatter now and save the renegade for last! Clarissa, with me!"

"Huh?" Clarissa saw Lingyin rocket up towards Squall, "Uh...I'll just tag along with-" Lingying clashed with Squall, while Autumn sallied forth with her wings and the sword. "EEP!" Clarissa winced, then bucked herself up for the final attack, "Come and get it, moth maid!"

"STOP PUSHING DASIES AND MOVE, PAGAN WOMAN!" Sokoto found time to blurt that out while fending off Ichika...

"DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO!" Clarissa forgot everything and headed straight for the renegade.

"Stay with me, kid!" Ichika yelled, moving in for a final thrust. Sokoto set himself up for a counter-

"HE IS MY TROPHY, NOT YOURS!" Xingjia appeared out of nowhere and kicked Ichika out of the battle.

Right in the middle of a cross. All she did was shift the target to herself. Sokoto's shield bounce made it to her jaw. The rest of her was ousted by a "CHUCK NORRIS KICK!" and flattened against a tree.

He froze in confusion, "Wait, I thought I was..." He rotated his finger to Xingjia, and then to Ichika, "Wait, how'd you get over there?"

"Dunno..." Ichika rubbed his head before noticing Clarissa about to ram Sokoto. "Hey, pay attention!" He instinctively yelled.

Sokoto shrieked before he blocked Clarissa's blast. She charged at him, preparing her AIC, but he flung his shield into the barrier. She threw it away and prepared her rail gun, but he blasted her with his wings.

"Well," Ichika was dumbfounded, but he refocused himself, "Guess I'll head back now..."

"Hello, brother," a creepy hiss jolted Ichika forward, and a sword blast to the face tripped him down.

"Ggghh...Ma...doka?..." Ichika said, "Why...I thought..."

"But your friends didn't," Madoka kicked him up and blasted his shield off. She lunged at him at full speed, but Lingyin and Xingjia kicked her out of the way.

"What's wrong with you?!" Autumn saved her from crashing into the ground. But they were pelted with cannon fire, which Autumn expended all her remaining energy reserves, and her IS, to save her from.

Xingjia caught one more peek at Ichika and the renegade about to go at it once more, with Squall still panicking Clarissa. She stopped everything and IB'd towards the scuffle, leaving Lingyin at the mercy of Madoka.

"Heh...fate has quite the sense of humor, doesn't it?" Madoka commented.

"We can talk about this, lady," Lingyin tried to reason with her, "I know you're his twin brother and-"

"Where did that come from?!" Madoka rushed in and slashed off Lingyin's body armor, "I THOUGHT I WAS A FILTHY LOW LIFE WASTE OF BREASTS!"

Lingyin's Ryuhou cannons couldn't save her IS in time. The Black Knight survived with one arm left.

"Well, I can't get my revenge outright," Madoka held Lingyin up by the neck, "but this should be enough to satisfy my lust!"

"Scary face..." Lingyin mumbled, "Really scary face..."

"Hey, whaddaya doin'?!" Sokoto sensed her KILL YOURSELF aura, "Leave her be!"

Squall saw him divert to Madoka and stopped scaring Clarissa to chase after Xingjia.

"What's going on, man?!" Ichika tried to chase down Sokoto.

"Oh, no you don't!" Xingjia grabbed his arm and swung him away from the renegade, "Make yourself useful and stay down!"

Autumn rubbed her head and managed to recover from her defense. Her IS was down, but she could still fight.

"Easy, Autumn..."

Could HAVE, more like...

"Squall?" Autumn looked up and saw her...essence? "But you were over-"

She saw it. The one picture that told her everything she needed to know for this moment. The Reiraku Byakuya phased through the Golden Dawn's barrier and plunged into Squall's heart. And Ichika wasn't responsible for the sword. Xingjia, hands free, forced his target switch, and gave all of them a pill too big to swallow.

Then, Squall took Autumn to IS sub space at the last minute!

And there they were, in the safe zone, frozen in time.

"Take it all in..." Squall knelt down beside her, "'cuz this is what the world has become. Women used to fight for their rights because they're being abused by men. Now, it's the other way around. Only men have no chance."

"What are you talking about?..."Autumn quivered.

"Why I abused you," Squall softly spoke, "I couldn't trust anyone because my father used me a lot."

"As in..." Autumn said.

"Yeah, exactly how I used you," Squall hugged her, "I can't apologize to you because it's not genuine. I don't know how to make you understand at all..."

Upon hearing those words, Autumn pushed Squall aside. Squall winced, wondering if it ever got through.

"You idiot..." Autumn burst into tears, "You half-brained, self-absorbed, COLOSSAL IDIOT!" She stood up, "It wasn't an apology I needed! It was love! It was your love I sought after! That's all I...I...I just..." She lost it. The tears flowed out with her indistinguishable sobs. She thought that everything was lost thanks to Squall's death.

But she felt a warm embrace and a wet kiss bring her sanity back.

"Well, at least I can give you that," Squall blushed, "I think..."

Autumn warmed up to her. She buried her face in her chest and let out the sadness for a good minute.

"There there," Squall eased her heart, "This isn't the end. It will be alright..."

"How?" Autumn begged, "How will it be alright?..."

Squall pointed to the renegade, standing in shock of what he just saw. "He basically has my will," She explained, "We had a moment, and I lit up my little spark in him."

"So," Autumn said, "You'll live through him?"

"Yeah...I'm not leaving you again..."

"But...what if...I couldn't even..."

"When the four seasons converge, a storm will set the world ablaze..."

"Huh? What are you-"

Before Autumn could get her thoughts out, Squall disappeared. Autumn couldn't discern what happened, but she knew she had to take those last words to heart. Because without Squall, she was the leader now. And she was about to get her first taste of her new role in Phantom Task, for they are back in the real world.

And in the real world, only Ichika, Squall, Autumn, Xingjia, and those around the country who saw the entire fight through the Byakushiki's eyes knew what truly happened. Everyone else witnessed it as a man killing a woman. Especially a man who believed in the goodness of all people.

Ichika didn't know what to think. He released his grip on the sword and backed away. Madoka dropped Lingyin, and they both stared at the unreal scene. Sokoto clammed up. The only person with whom he shared a personal connection...gone. He dropped to his knees and teared up. Clarissa just stood in the middle of the void, unable to comprehend the recent turn of events.

But not Xingjia. She yanked the sword from Squall's body and turned to Ichika. "About time you figured out your place," she slashed him and destroyed his IS, "Never take your face out of the ground again." She turned to the renegade's back, "As for you..." she walked to him, "Your filth has eroded this society long enough!" She readied the Barrier Void Strike once more and thrust forward, "Now learn your true place!"

Sokoto reached behind and grabbed the tip before it ever touched him. He squeezed hard enough to break the blade and send an electric shockwave surging through Xingjia's IS. Then, he sent all his remaining energy into his wings, sprouting pure energy widespread lasers, several of which slashed away at Xingjia's IS and eventually wounded her. She was pinned against the cabin rubble.

"But how?!" she screamed, "He's nowhere near capable of-"

A screen popped up: EMERGENCY OVERRIDE. CONVERTING EXCESS ANGER INTO WING ENERGY. MAX THIRTY SECONDS.

She done it now. She looked on in horror as her nightmare came true.

"RRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA~~~" Sokoto's shrill screech echoed throughout the region. The laser wings turned red and wreaked havoc on the mountain. Trees collapsed and the ground shook. Mount Fuji itself was scarred.

"Hey, calm down!" Madoka rushed to his side, "We can't do it here!"

"We have to go now!" Clarissa shouted, "We can't finish the mission!"

"Board Clarissa's IS and get out now!" Lingyin ordered.

"But the re-" Xingjia started but was dragged off by Clarissa.

"He'll kill us if we stayed here any longer!" Clarissa screamed while carrying them out of the prefecture, "Besides, look what he did in just thirty seconds!"

They all saw the sudden damage he inflicted. The Suicide Forest, and any nearby trees that may have stood tall, gone. A giant gnash on the mountainside. No denying it now. That boy took his IS to the next level. Something a man should not have been able to do, but did.

Xingjia grew worrisome. If he could get this much power from seeing someone killed...

"Hold it!" Lingyin realized, "What about Ichika?!"

"He may have been caught in the blast," Xingjia said, "For all we know, he's a goner."

"No! He can't be! He has so many questions he has to answer!" Lingyin protested, "Turn this thing around now!"

"I can't," Clarissa said, "I can't make contact with him..."

"No..." Lingyin was shaken. She spent the rest of the trip wondering what to do next. Now that see's seen her friends for what they really are...

Back in the forest, nobody was sure on what to do. Sokoto was on his knees sobbing like a madman, Madoka was trying to stop his tears, the Gospel hid behind the wood, Autumn just sat there downright frightened...

...and Ichika? What could he do? Even if it was by someone else's machinations, he still killed someone. What was he supposed to do now?

He tried to approach the out-of-character Madoka, "Uh...listen-"

"GET OUT!" Madoka screamed, "GET OUT AND NEVER COME NEAR ME AGAIN!"

"Just let me help you-"

Madoka threw a rock straight into his eye. He winced and curled up to bear the pain, while she just kept on talking, "You're just like them! You would stab them in the throat when it's convenient for you!"

"Please...wait..." Ichika grunted, "I-"

"Ichika dear, we need you back at the Academy!" Houki radioed via private channel, "It's a frenzy! I can't calm them down!"

Ichika shut it off. He could see he wasn't wanted here, but he felt like he had to say something. If only he could get some peace and quiet for one maddening day...

"If it's any consolation," he said, "I'm sorry for what I did..."

"What do I care?" Madoka said coldly, "You're no brother of mine."

Ichika swerved back, "You don't mean that!"

She wished she didn't, but she did. And she proved it by grabbing a twig and almost lancing it through his neck, but Autumn grabbed her hand and stopped her.

"Not now..." she fought the words through, "We need a moment of silence..."

Madoka struggled for a second, but let go as soon as they heard Squall hack blood from her mouth. Sokoto, Silver, and Autumn jolted up and ran to her side. Madoka just knelt there, wanting to take her twin flesh and blood, but decided against it. She just stood up and limped towards her fallen comrades.

Ichika didn't do anything more. He just captured a snapshot of entire group mourning for their boss and left.

All of Phantom Task could see the gaping hole in her chest. The only think keeping her alive is the Golden Dawn, which is expending its shield energy to keep her body going until it zeroes out.

The entire team was distraught, because the renegade snapped them all out of their psychopathic needs and started to open them up to the joys of the real world. Squall was the most distraught, because she had a total change of heart, before it was destroyed. And Sokoto-

"No, you can't die now!" he wailed, "Stay with us, lady! You still had some unfinished business! You can't die until you take care of that!"

"Oh...it's ok, little hero..." Squall mumbled, "I've done...what I needed to do..."

"No, you still have to take us across the world!" Sokoto rambled, "Beach time in the Pacific, Antarctic snowball fights, F1 go karts, we still have so much to do!"

"It's fine..." Squall stopped him by caressing his hair, "You still have...Anna...and Madoka..."

"But we all need you!" Sokoto shot back, "You're the glue keeping this little squad together!"

"No..." Squall whispered, "That was all you..."

"Huh?" Sokoto said, "What are you..."

"You are the reason...I was able... to forgive myself... for everyone I ever hurt..." Squall teared, "Everything I've done..."

"She's right..." Autumn patted his shoulder and shed teared with them, "You reached out to her and changed her heart... and that in turn changed mine... I can't hope to let go of what you did, Squall...but at least... I can forgive you..."

"Thank you...Autumn..." Squall said, and shifted her eyes to Madoka, "M..."

"What..." Madoka could no longer hide her sadness and confusion, because that little s*bag made her care, "I don't need to say anything...you can read...my aura...or what...e...ver..." She broke down and hugged Autumn.

"You came to me...because you needed a family..." Squall said, "You never wanted... to slash your face...did you?..."

"NO, OKAY?!" Madoka sadscreamed, "I WANTED TO GET RID OF THE BAD MEMORIES, BUT OK! NO, I DIDN'T! I WANTED SOMEONE TO NOT SEE ME AS A TWIN OR A LOOKALIKE, SOMEONE TO SEE ME FOR ME! AND YOU AND THAT F*ING DICKWEED JUST...just..." and then she completely lost it.

"Icy like winter..." Squall said.

"Stop joking around!" Sokoto butt in, "We gotta get her some help! Silver, we have to-"

The Golden Dawn's energy meter flashed red, meaning Squall's time was almost up.

"No! Not like this!" Sokoto broke down, "Anything but this!"

"I have to..." Squall cuddles his ear, "You promise me...you'll stay together...with Anna and Madoka..."

"I will...Everything I couldn't do with you, I'll do with them," Sokoto crumbled, "Because...they're family...we ain't blood related...but we are...family..."

"Yeah..." Autumn knelt down beside Squall, "We are family now..."

"We'll survive together...no matter what..." Madoka mumbled through her tears.

"That's all I want..." Squall whispered, "Silver..."

The Gospel hovered close to Squall and knelt down beside her.

"If you don't get your sister back..." Squall gave her a locket, "Promise me...you will take the renegade to England..."

Silver cupped her hands around the locket and nodded.

"Thank you..." Squall slowly said, as she gave Sokoto one last embrace, "Take care of them, kid...They're with you now..."

Sokoto closed his eyes and hugged her.

Squall closed her eyes and lifted her head to the sky, glimmering the soft sunny rays of the early spring.

"Goodbye...my darling summer sky..." Squall kissed Sokoto.

Right when the Golden Dawn's energy gauge dropped to 0.

The IS faded to gray. Squall's hands fell to the oft grass. Sokoto lifted his head the instant he could no longer sense her aura. She's among the wind now, ever flowing from place to place, never to come back to her home again.

"Squall?" Sokoto weakly asked. He felt a slight breeze waft his hair. As the sun rose from the mountains, he got his answer, "SQUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAL!"


	4. I Don't Do Politics

_Part 4: I Don't Do Politics_

 **-NEXT DAY-**

All of Japan is reeling from the battle of last night. As in, they have their first real debate over whether to keep things the way they were, or ditch the Alaska Treaty and weaponize the IS altogether.

 **-TOKYO UNIVERSITY, TOKYO PREFECTURE; BATTLE VIEWPOINT BYAKUSHIKI-**

A newscast in the main gym, from freaking NHK of all stations, especially the morning round table...forget it, just listen:

"We have just witnessed the unthinkable! That IS has the Barrier Void ability, and he used it on-"

"A woman. There is no doubt in my mind that the IS is defective. He must be held accountable for his actions."

"One big problem with that theory: We can see here that the renegade was his intended target, but someone forcefully redirected him to a known terrorist."

"Why does that matter?! Phantom Task would not have even existed had he not been dumb enough to get himself lost in his middle school!"

"I wonder, would another group have risen anyway?"

"And what about her, Chen Xingjia, the woman who forced his hand?"

"What about her? She was doing everything in her legal rights to-"

"Why are they even talking about this?!" a female student yelped, "We all saw what happened! We know that something's wrong!"

"Yeah," another one, "Your brain."

"What do you say when a woman makes a man kill another woman?!" And another one.

"I say, she was doing his job for him," and another one, "Besides, he wasn't needed-"

"Did you see the way he tore that mountain up because of that Chinese woman?!" And another one.

And then the entire gym, then the building, then the school had in on the talk. Pretty soon, this will be the topic of the final exam.

 **-TOKYO HOSPITAL; BATTLE VIEWPOINT SCHWARZER WÄCHTER-**

Not even excessive amounts of morphine can ease Laura's mind. Not after what she witnessed prior to her checkup. Speaking of...

"Please," Laura asked the nurse, "No pain reducers."

"Are you sure?" The nurse asked, "We're checking up on your legs today-"

"It'll be easier for me," Laura said, "I can take it."

Take it, she did. Through the reflex test, daily exercise, and the agonizing treatments, none of it could compare to watch her "bride"(?) kill someone, even if it was a terrorist. In fact, that was the weirdest part. Even though she knows Squall is a villain, even though she knew she led the kidnap of Ichika and forced Chifuyu to withdraw from the Mondo Grosso...

...why can't she stomach him killing her outright?

Once the treatments were finished, she made her way to the cafe. There, she tried to ignore the talk about kicking the renegade out of Japan and taking the Byakushiki away from Ichika. For the most part, she was able to drown out the noise. What she couldn't drown out was the bit where the news people went on about how she tried to stop him five times. Some suspected her of sympathizing with the renegade, when others made it clear she hated his guts.

Like right now, when she stared at the TV screen and bent her spoon.

"Again..." she hissed, "Does no one have the sensibility to kill him..."

"What's gotten into you?" one of the patients asked.

Laura snapped out of it and looked at her. "Nothing..." she mumbled and went back to eating.

"Hey," the patient sat down with her, "I recognize you! You're that girl with the golden eye!"

"What about it?"

"Didn't you try to take the renegade down before?"

"Yes," she grumbled, "but now I feel like scheisse..." She got up to get another plate, and the patient followed her, "Every time I try to kill the little pig, it always ends in disaster. Someone, or something, always saves him at the last minute."

"That's harsh..." the patient commented, "I thought you had an entire army behind you."

"I put Clarissa in temporary command, but clearly that was a mistake. I can see not she can't handle brigades of units and manga, much less strengthen her spirit against suicidal spirits."

They went back to the table and found more guests.

"Did you really fight the renegade?" One of them asked, "How strong was he?"

"What do you mean, how strong?" Another interrupted, "He blew a gash in Mount Fuji!"

"Fuji?!" Laura piped, "Isn't that an active volcano?... and a sacred one at that..."

"Yeah," one of them answered, "but the renegade's not powerful enough to trigger that eruption."

"If he did, it would be the end of Tokyo," someone quipped, "and we would have to launch a worldwide manhunt for that nasty little termite."

"Maybe then, we'd FINALLY have an excuse to kill him," Laura said, "I tell you now, the only reason the renegade keeps escaping is because they want him captured and tortured, not killed. That kind of mercy will only bring destruction in the disguise of spiky hair!"

"Whoa..." a patient was miffed by that last one, "You from Germany, kid?"

"Why, yes," Laura smiled, "yes I am."

And she spent the rest of her stay chatting with nearly everyone in the hospital.

 **-ODORI PARK, HOKKAIDO PREFECTURE; BATTLE VIEWPOINT BYAKUSHIKI-**

The entire prefecture was still shellshocked. They just saw the unthinkable: a woman dragged a man's sword into killing a fellow woman. Were women always this guileful?

Normally the park would be thriving with the spring festival, but today nothing went on. Not even the sakura trees let a single leaf fall. The only noise that accompanied the entire prefecture was just traffic. Traffic, and a few women who dared venture outside their homes and into the urban sanctuary. Two of them ran into each other by the Crystal Fountain.

"Hey..."

"Hey yourself..."

"So...about that battle last night-"

"Don't even talk to me about that thing, ok?!"

"Oh, if I don't, someone else will," she showed her a live stream of HBC Morning Report:

"Right now, local politicians are gathering signatures for a legislative committee that could lead to a change in the Alaska Treaty. Takuno Mamiya is leading the petition, and she has currently gathered at least 500 signatures within the first hour-"

A stranger shut it off, "Can we not have this conversation for one moment?!"

"Well, every single person in the country is doing it."

"Dude, no! This is the very spot where the IS was introduced!"

"And the spot where the White Knight struck down like every single middle ever."

"It was supposed to be a woman's fight! Woman's!"

"I always said, men will drive women crazy."

"Why'd he even butt in, anyway?"

"'Cuz he was a wild card. And they shouldn't have seen him coming."

"Well, they did, and now he's gonna make things worse thanks to that little stunt."

"Who? The renegade, or the ponyboy?"

"I dunno. Both?"

"Ugh, why do I even bother?!" She stormed off to try and escape the park. Only to run into far more intense conversations outside. One of them, about finalizing a piece of legislation about expanding availability of the IS to the military.

 **-AKINA SPORTS BAR, GUNMA PREFECTURE; BATTLE VIEWPOINT SHENLONG-**

The bar was full of angry women slamming cups and bottles on the floor, taking their frustrations out on each other just to forget what they saw. The situation was so unstable that an ambulance was present since last night.

And once again, Kanzashi was on a table by the window, able to spectate everything that happened. She was twirling a lollipop in her mouth, while everyone else was twirling words.

"Did I really help cause this?..." she whispered in awe.

"I can see it all now!" A drunk woman shrieked, "Me! With a man under my feet! Dragging his sorry face across the street, blood spewing from his every orifice, begging for mercy! But he'll never get it! No thanks to that faded stallion and the renegade accomplice!"

"I'll deal with him first!" Another grabbed that woman's face, "He's my beef, not yours!"

"Get in line, womb raider!" She said the beloved. And they fought.

Kanzashi facepalmed. Why were they fighting over a man killing a woman? Instead of wasting on each other, they should be wasting on the Empress to order the men to Tokyo for prosecution or something. But don't tell them that. They're a little slow.

She suddenly got a message on her glasses, "How's everything in Japan? :3" She tapped her hairpins and took a snapshot of the crowd. She sent it with, "Just swimmingly -_-"

And in return, she got, "Hang in there little sis : 3" with a picture of her goofy face plunging towards an angry crowd at the bottom of the Eiffel.

"Haahhhhhh..." she sighed, "I don't know how you do it..."

Then, her table got hit with a bottle and a body. She lazily peeked up and saw the woman she humiliated before.

"Hey, I know you!" the woman pointed, "You're that freak I throttled a few weeks ago!"

"*SIGH...*" Kanzashi pissed her off.

"Don't you wag your s*t over me!" The woman screamed, "You owe me for the bike you trashed!"

"Pipe down, fleabag," Kanzashi groaned and leaned on the guardrail, "You'll have babies with the renegade you're so loud."

That did it. The woman and her friends surrounded Kanzashi, who just rolled her eyes.

"Looks like this bimbo needs a lesson in respect," the woman cracked her knuckles while the others chuckled maniacally, "Any last words?" She didn't give her a chance as she threw the punch right after finishing the question.

Kanzashi redirected the fist at the woman behind her. She tripped the woman over, making her stilettos pierce the third woman's crotch. She then flipped over the rail, kicking all three women in their chins. When she landed, she did a twirl and a curtsy.

"Thank you for giving me a bit of your attention," she said as she strut her stuff in front of the entire bar, earning the vain of practically all of Gunma.

The women stood there, building their rage at the only woman who isn't freaking out. How could she act so calm at a time like this? How could she not take offense to the fact that a man, the lowest life form on the planet, sullied the purity of a female, who represents everything that is just and righteous? Well, no more. They would wipe this stain from the clean, white canvas themselves. If Kanzashi was 99.999999999% for them, then she was 100% against them. The woman who pined for revenge drew all her rage into her gun. She yanked the trigger back and fired at Kanzashi. The entire street heard the shot. They stood still, waiting for the sound of blood.

Instead, they got a sound of a metal rainbow. The bullet hit an invisible barrier. The woman dropped her gun, face twisting in irreversible anger, as she realized that she had been had for the third time by the same slimeball.

That slimeball who materialized a giant spear, aimed at the bar.

"Feel better now?" Kanzashi smirked.

The woman screamed in agony. No one in the entire prefecture could stand up to an IS pilot, since everyone born in the prefecture maxed out at a D-compatibility rating! The woman would never get her just privileges, as she continued to curse Kanzashi, who stole her motorcycle and made for the Tower.

 **-HAMAMATSU CITY HALL, SHIZUOKA PREFECTURE; BATTLE VIEWPOINT SHENLONG-**

The mayor was addressing the public about a petition to force a change in the Alaska Treaty.

"Since my announcement two hours ago, the website has crashed multiple times due to overwhelming traffic of users trying to sign the petition. The good news is that we were able to update our system as of five minutes ago, and boy! Oh, boy have you delivered! We already have a hundred thousand signatures! And as I speak, more are coming!"

Loud cheers for the mayor and jeers for the renegade erupted from the gigantic assembly.

The mayor continued, "Thank you for your support, and extra thank you for letting the country know where we stand on the so-called women's rights, when they should have been given to us long before Eve took the apple!"

Even more praise as posters demanding the Byakushiki be confiscated shook wildly.

The mayor continued, "The government should never have given that boy a personal IS unit! In fact, from the moment he wandered into the charging room in middle school, he should have been locked away!" Applause. "Now is the time for the government to open its eyes and see the corruption its man animals have wrought upon Japan! Now is the time to force the nations of the world to change the Alaska Treaty! So that the working woman will never lose her place on top of the world!" Cheering and applause. Then...this. "Hear me now, man who has no right to be related to Chifuyu Orimura! Hear me now, little boy who is not registered as a Japanese citizen! You are no longer welcome here in our great land! We will snuff you out! And we will take back what is rightfully ours!" And the crowd goes ballistic.

In a bad way. Because this very speech, which simply rallied the woman of Japan to storm the world political front...

 **-KOIWAI FARM PARK, IWATE PREFECTURE; BATTLE VIEWPOINT SCHWARZER WÄCHTER-**

...was already being employed in full force.

"Momma! Momma!" a little boy screamed, "Don't let them take me!"

"No!" His mother begged, "Please! I'll do anything! I give you anything! Just don't take my only child!"

"Shut it, clad," a yakuza woman shot the mother in the foot. The little boy flailed and broke free of his captors' grasp, only to be knees in the gut by the mafia woman, "You know I hate men. You know I told you what would happen if you tried to harbor a filthy s*bag like this monkey."

"No! Have mercy!" The mother clung to the boss's leg, "There must be something you can do! Anything! He's just a little boy! He can listen! Please, just spare him!"

"Well," the boss scratched her head, "Since this is a special occasion, I guess I can show mercy..."

The mother wiped her tears from her eyes. She felt so thankful that the boss would listen to her for once. Her son was a little relieved to see them talking about lightening the tensions.

"Thank you...thank you..." the mother wept, "You won't regret it..."

"I know," the boss said-

*BLAM*

...before she shot the mother's neck.

The boy looked horrified when he saw her mother go down. She was literally the only thing protecting him from this cruel world. And now, he will be consumed.

"NO! MOMMA! MOMMA!" he screamed and thrashed as his captors threw him in the trunk and hauled him away.

The mother looked on, and muttered one final word, "...wh...why..."

"Because I'm being merciful," the boss woman answered, yanking the mother's head up by the hair, "If I wasn't being merciful, I would've knocked you unconscious and sent you to the Cali Farm. Just like I did your worthless husband."

The mother was devastated. The one person who promised to bring her family back turned out to be the one behind the strings of her permanent heartache. She couldn't believe that her belief in the good of all people had failed her. She carried the extreme sorrow to the grave with one final shot to her heart.

"Now, hurry up and die," the boss stomped her head in the dirt, "before I change my mind." And she left the mother to wallow in her own regret. She got in her car and dialed her subordinates, "Package en route to Suicide Forest. We'll trap the renegade with this." She hung up as she les the car on a very brief but very bumpy stretch of dirt, then onto the highway. "That pubic disease won't know what hit him when I see the anger turn to fear."

Well, she wasn't alone on that thought.

 **-HAMADA STATION, SHIMANE PREFECTURE; BATTLE VIEWPOINT SPLIT-**

For some reason, the entire prefecture, plus seven others, saw the fight from both Ichika's and Lingyin's viewpoint. Now, the very play station of Ichika's hometown has become a battleground of views ranging from "Give Ichika a second chance" to "Why did he have to be born".

"Come on! You saw what happened! That Chinese girl shoved his ego right into someone's junk!"

"I knew that Lingyin was shifty, but to make someone else do her dirty work?!"

"Never trust squinty-eyed people who look alike..."

"The hell did I hear you say?!"

"You heard me?!"

"You didn't see what that guy did?!"

"He shoved his sword into that woman! And he's the guy that said he values all life!"

"He's a fraud, and you know it!"

"I know I saw him get winded up by that freak!"

"He's the freak!"

"Who's the one that attacked the Mondo Grosso in the first place?!"

And then it escalated quickly and stayed that way.

 **-IS ACADEMY; BATTLE VIEWPOINT SPLIT-**

But none of it compared to what the pilots would face back on home base.

Somehow, Ichika was able to make it back to the campus without being seen. He was able to manipulate the Byakushiki's barrier into an anti-detection shield, and it bought him enough time to sneak into a speed boat and hightail it to the island. But the instant he docked, he was bombarded with staff, journalists, and pilots, all toppling him back into the water, demanding answers from him.

"The hell?!" he knocked the sea out of his ears, "Since when did they get here?!"

"Sorry, Ichika!" Houki pushed her way to him and pulled him out of the water, "They got here as soon as you entered the mainland! We tried to stop them, but-"

"There he is!" A reporter found them, "Get him!"

They media stormed the deck and hustled them with questions about what else.

"How do you feel to have degraded yourself to the most heinous crime ever?!"

"Did you plan to use the Barrier Void Attack on anyone besides the renegade?!"

"What would you say to those who believe that men should stay away from the Infinite Stratos?!"

"Why are you defending a criminal, Miss Shinonono?!"

They couldn't take it anymore. They deployed their swords and rushed their way to the central park.

Where even more media hassled every single person on the island. And they were relentless, questioning Chifuyu on her brother's true relationship, Xingjia and Lingyin on their perspectives, and the rest of the staff on God knows what else.

"Where are the kids?" Ichika asked.

"Residence hall, top floor," Houki said, "They're really scared of the presses."

"We gotta comfort them!" Ichika grabbed Houki and made towards the-

"Where do you think you're going?!" Xingjia singled him out, "That's him! That's the man that killed a fellow pilot!"

"Not again..." Ichika braced himself for the worst.

"Wait!" Houki tried to settle them down, "That woman was a terrorist, a member of Phantom Task!"

"We don't care!" A reporter for TXN said, "And while we're at it, why would you want to associate yourself with him?!"

Before Houki could give an answer, she and Ichika were cut off from each other. They faced the onslaught of ridiculous questions and accusations of abuse and abuse of abuse by abuse.

Ichika tried to shake them off, but Xingjia made sure they stayed on his tail. "Tell them to leave me alone!" He screamed.

"Tell them why you chose to kill of a female pilot!" Xingjia demanded.

"ALRIGHT! THAT'S ENOUGH!" Chifuyu punched a camera down and shielded Ichika from further attack, "If you want him, you'll have to get through me!"

"What are you saying?!" Xingjia confronted her, "Do you not realize what he did?! Do you not realize who he is?!"

"I already know who he is, thank you," Chifuyu answered, "Sure, he's a dunderhead, and a big one at that. He can be rash, blindsided, and even annoying!" Ichika dropped his head in embarrassment. But then this happened, "But he's my brother above all else. We may fight every now and then. We may question each other's actions, but we're family. That's all that matters."

Ichika marveled. His big sister was finally stepping up for him. He thought he'd have to do it without her, but it felt like she lifted a giant weight off his shoulders.

She winked at him and turned back to face the crowd, "And I saw the entire fight through his eyes. I can say with 100% confidence that he did not mean to kill Squall so brutally! He was forcefully redirected to strike her by one of his own teammates!"

"His camera was defective!" Xingjia screamed, "President Lingyin's viewpoint tells the complete story! You don't know what you're talking about!"

"Oh, I think she does," Lingyin pushed the spectating crowd aside and confronted the group.

"President!" Xingjia gleefully cheered, "You can clear up to her that she is wrong, can you?"

"Uh...yeah, have a look at this," Lingyin projected a video from her wrist, "Got this off of your IS, Major Liang."

"Mine?..." Xingjia took a step back, "How..."

"It's Chinese law that all IS pilots have footage of their battles streamed directly to the Central Communications Administration," Lingyin said, "Holdzebluhh, I believe this is what Lady Orimura was referring to."

And right then and there, everyone saw what truly happened. It was the battle from Xingjia's viewpoint. Right when Ichika chased after the renegade, Xingjia interrupted him, yanked his arm, swung him around, shouted "Make yourself useful and stay down!", and shoved his sword into Squall. All the reporters immediately questioned Xingjia's true motives for joining the fight. All kinds of questions were being whispered.

"Yes...I did it..." Xingjia curled an evil smile, "And I would do it all over again. The IS is a woman's right! No man is allowed to change that! I would see to it that every man who dares look at an IS is driven out of his life!"

"Even if it meant betraying the very gender you oh so graciously glorify?" Chifuyu could smell the crazy.

"Shut up, you sick slut!" Xingjia snapped, "Women who associate with the filthy beasts have no right to talk!"

"I would associate with that filthy beast," Lingyin butt in, "Do I have a right to talk?"

"You are different!" Xingjia walked closer, "Can't you see that you have been corrupted? The mere smell of a man is enough to make a woman bow down in shame-"

"Yeah, hold that thought," Lingyin slammed on Xingjia's mouth and went crazy with her wrists.

"Uh...what are you doing?" Xingjia muffled.

"Making sure everyone in China and the entire ASEAN sees this," Lingyin dropped, "I'll discuss your punishment tomorrow."

"Wait, we can talk about this!" Xingjia stammered, "Surely you-"

Lingyin deployed her arm and sword and stuck it in Xingjia's face. "Bunker. Silence. Now."

She saw through. Xingjia had no choice but to obey. She left, with the entire media squad tailing her for questions.

"Uh... Listen...I just-" Ichika was about to say something, but he was strangled by Chifuyu.

"YOU GOT SOME NERVE MAKING ME SAY SOMETHING SO EMBARRASSINGLY CHEESY, OUT OF CHARACTER, RED BLUSH GOD HELP ME WHY!" She screamed.

"Can't...I...say...thanks...just...once?!..." He managed to squeak the words out of the choke hold before he was released into fresh air.

"Don't act like you didn't deserve that," Chifuyu plucked his head, "You keep throwing your life in the trash can! We always have to get it back out for you!"

Ichika stood back up, "Well, what can I say? Everywhere there's danger..."

"You gotta learn to take it easy every now and then," Houki said, "That's how you got entangled in this mess to begin with."

"She's right," Lingyin commented, "Normally, I'd have butt in and pounded you, but this time seemed like the only time to let it simmer down."

"It wasn't you who killed her," Houki said, "Even though she captured you, stole your IS, tried to kill you on several occasions-"

"Ok, enough re-pep," Chifuyu shoved everyone en route to the cafeteria, "Let's talk this over breakfast and figure out where to go from here."

"YAHOO! Sweet and Sour pork, here I come!" Lingyin cheered.

"I swear, you're addicted to the stuff..." Houki said.

Ichika radioed the kids to meet them at the cafeteria. After all he's been through in the last FOUR HOURS!, he needed it. Anything to get his mind off of the impact his recent hit had. After all, he may be staying at the Academy for a lot longer than he intended.


	5. Looking Back

_Part 5: Looking Back_

 **-TWO DAYS LATER-**

 **-SUICIDE FOREST, MOUNT FUJI-**

Phantom Task was still grieving over their recent loss. The fact that Squall was quite literally the only thing holding them together was still sending shockwave after shockwave of harsh reality throughout the group. They didn't know what to do. They just continued to live in the forest, making everything they needed without saying one lick.

Which, even for past standards, was off. At least back then, they talked about battle tactics and whose hair to pull out. Here, nothing. No one knew what to say, not even Sokoto, and he's the wisest crack of all the wisecracks! He just sat under the only standing tree, arms hugging his knees, staring at the ground. He did nothing for two days, moving only to eat or bathroom. Autumn and Madoka only gave him passing glances. For the most part, they let him be, choosing to keep their sorrow at bay by focusing on their survival. Silver usually stayed hidden in the outskirts until it could hear the campfire roaring. It still held onto the locket Squall gave it, not even bothering to open it.

But this night was it. The campfire roared. Silver sat across from the trio. Autumn somehow made grasssnakeleafroadkill kebabs taste extra good. Knowing the renegade's patterns with food, that meant they cannot stay here any longer.

And Madoka couldn't take the silence anymore. "Ok, I'll bite," she said, starting Autumn.

"You never start talking unless it's to slice your face off!" Autumn yelped, "And how come you didn't beeline towards pony boy?!"

"I don't know..." Madoka sighed, "I guess it's because Sokoto wore me out to exhaustion. It was easier to let go than to hold on."

"And you never said his name before," Autumn griped, "What the hell has he done to us?..."

Silver pointed to Sokoto. Then, she pointed to where the heart would be if she were a human. Then, she spread her arms.

"Ugh, I was afraid that would happen..." Autumn groaned, "Ever since we found this guy, he's been nothing but a pain..."

"Yeah..." Madoka smiled (GOD HELP US ALL!), "I still remember when he couldn't tell the difference between breasts and a train wreck..."

"He still can't..." Autumn commented, "like when he freaked out when I caressed him, and suddenly three months later he can't tell a curling iron from a feather..."

Silver retreated into its standby mode, desperate to delete what it just heard.

"That...why would you..." Madoka blanked out.

"Heheheh," Autumn grinned, "I have my obsessions."

"Any of them involve extreme BDSM?"

"Do you even know what that is?"

"I hear you doing something to Squall every night back in Shibuya..."

"Eugh...I thought we soundproofed the walls..."

"Lady-everyone could hear you and her going at it! I swear I could even hear you like five prefectures away or something!"

"Speaking of... the renegade called us a lot during that time."

"He what?!"

"He called about when we're gonna strike at the compound, and when he asked why we sounded so out of breath, I told him we were running."

"Oh, he ran alright...but he got a phone?! No wonder there were more patrol geeks there suddenly!"

"What'd he do?"

"He made a makeshift mask and started the legend of the penis man..."

"Ohhhh, so that's what he did at the compound."

"If he carried that mask into Gunma..."

"They were only in there for a few days..."

"A few days, my ass. I don't know what he did, but done it big."

"Oh, yeah. He even got that drill-brained blonde bimbo in on the fun!"

"I don't wanna know..."

"Y'know...he wouldn't stop calling us even while we were in prison... he said that Squall planned to make it up to us when this whole "Silvia" fiasco was all said and done..."

"Really?...Squall...said that?..."

"And he got some help from a blue-haired, droopy eyed hairpin girl-"

"KANZASHI?!"

"...yyeeeeaaaaaahhhhhhhh?...What is with you, seriously?..."

"God... and through all that...when they split..."

"They still kept contact somehow. I know it..."

"Did he tell you how?..."

"Nope. He just showed me. Well, I tried to show him up by torturing-"

"WILL YOU SHUT UP ABOUT THE MAN SLAVE THING?!"

"But I got caught up in the passion. Every time."

"...Oh. Well..."

"And then he had this thing where we would sing our hearts out...let out all of our frustrations by screaming into the mic, telling the world how we felt."

"...how did you feel?..."

"...great, actually. I can't explain it, but...suddenly I didn't wanna murder so much anymore..."

"Same with me. Back in DisneySea, I sat there watch the fireworks. Squall wasn't on her usual gruntled self. She f*ing asked me what my favorite ride was..."

"Ok. I'm calling it. The renegade swallowed a core."

"That's impossible. He wouldn't have lived through it."

"Ok, but he had to have been influenced by something radioactive. If it ain't a melting core, then what?"

"Not a what," Sokoto interrupted their lively conversation, "a who."

Silver reassumed her android form and knelt down beside the fire.

"Dude!" Autumn jumped, "Since when were you listening?!"

"Since you two yapped for five minutes," he answered and stood up staring at the full moon.

Autumn and Madoka looked at each other funny. Like they can't believe that they were even acquaintances. They never talk friendly. Ever. There's no denying it now, as if they ever mustered any effort to deny it in the first place.

"When I was little," Sokoto said, "I was hiding away behind a dumpster, cuddles in warm clothes. And through that tiniest of peepholes, I saw it."

"What'd you see?" Madoka asked.

"A woman," he answered, "cuddling her son. Giving him her own warmth." He turned to them, "That's the image that burnt into my brain. That's what I wanted to protect." He walked back to the fire and sat ccas, "But it looks like I failed before I even began."

Madoka and Silver looked at each other.

"Ahem...just throwing this out there, but..." Autumn blushed, "Don't you have us?..."

Madoka face palmed. She hoped she wouldn't have to hear that. Sokoto looked at Autumn.

"I mean..." Autumn jittered, "Well...we're here...and we can...well..." She wagged her head and changed to the one question that's been eating her mind, "What was Squall to you, really?"

He thought about it for a minute. Then he gave his answer, "She's like a mother...the mother I wish I could have, but can't..."

"Haha..." Autumn weld up her tears, "So that's how it is..." She had their relationship completely wrong.

And he sensed it, "Not what you were expecting?"

"No..." Autumn buried her face, "I thought you were trying to steal her away from me...that's why I felt so uneasy about you... I thought she was fibbing, but then you did a big number on her..."

"Guess I should've clarified, huh?" He solemnly responded.

"That, and he's like twenty years younger than Squall," Madoka butt in, "So it's impossible for them to-"

Autumn went animalistic and mushed Madoka's hair in an effort to shut her up.

"What's your deal with Squall anyway?" Sokoto seemed to lighten up a bit, "I know you have beef with her, but where did it all come from?"

Autumn jolted. She turned back to him goofy-like, "You'll understand once you fall in love with someone..."

"The hell kind of answer is that?!" Madoka snapped, then realized that Sokoto didn't respond at all, "What? No wisecracks today?"

"Nah," he scratched his head, "I figured we needed a break..."

"Oh..." Madoka and Autumn were taken aback by Sokoto's split-second maturity.

"And while we're on the subject," Sokoto went on, "You called that guy "brother"."

"Ggg-" Madoka winced, "What waxed up your ears? I never said anything like that."

At which point Silver projected portraits of Ichika and Madoka, plus any personal information about them. Including the same birthdate/birthplace/birth time/surname.

"Well, ain't that just the biggest kick in the nuts," Autumn noogie'd Madoka, "Looks like even you can be flustered too!"

"SHAAAAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYA!" Madoka chased Autumn with her lances, "SHAAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYA!"

"Why is nipple?..." Sokoto muttered.

Silver saw them rounding the tree and let them slam into her wings. When she withdrew them, it was a surreal AM freak-out freeze frame comical collapse moment.

"So, you're a fan of slapstick, eh Silver?" Sokoto asked. Silver nodded.

"Ugh..." Madoka recovered, "That's some severe mood whiplash..."

"Well," Sokoto commented, "I'd say that all our lives were whipped the instant we ran into each other."

"I'll say..." Autumn sat next to Silver, "I would still be torturing Squall by now...probably never escape my sorrow if it weren't for him..."

"Same here," Madoka stretched by the fire, "I would've gone off the deep end and actually cut my face off...but then, what would I be?...My parents shunned me for not being Chifuyu or Ichika, just because I look like them...but now that they're gone, I am finally free..."

"Lemme guess," Autumn said, while holding a fishing tumbleweed bait, "You killed your parents, didn't you? NYAAdoka?"

"Yes, and go f*** yourself," Madoka swatted the ball away, before realizing what she just said, "Since when did you start joking around?!"

"Since I stopped wanting to sulk," Autumn answered, "Joking around is the number one distraction from the conversation, isn't it Sokoto?"

"Actually, I killed my parents too," Sokoto dropped an unnecessary bomb.

"WHAT WAS THAT YOU SAID ABOUT A MOTHER AND HER SON?!" Madoka and Autumn simultaneously shouted.

"It happened before that," Sokoto reminisced, "I can't remember what led up to that, but my mom burned the house down to prevent my escape when I was three. She held me by the neck and got ready to stab me. I shoved it in her arm... and since then, I did everything I could to make sure I never did anything like that again."

"Boy...that's rough..." Autumn said.

"But, it looks like I'll have to do it again," Sokoto declared.

"What do you mean?" Autumn asked.

"You had your way with Squall every day," he explained, "but don't you still feel like you have to give back tenfold?"

Autumn thought for a moment. "Yeah..." she responded, "I definitely feel like getting even after they killed her..."

"And you, Madoka," he said, "Do you still want to slash your face? Or is there someone else you want to slash?"

"No need to ask," Madoka said, "I'll always have a grudge regardless. But now I want to slice up Ichika's face. It's not his real one, after all..."

"I...see..." Sokoto saw the black tentacle aura around her, then turned to the Gospel, "What about you? Do you have anything you need to settle?"

Silver nodded, then pulled up an article it saved about the White Knight Missile Crisis.

"Hey, I know that story," Madoka said, "Supposedly, someone singlehandedly hacked into every missile system in the world and fired off all the missiles at Tokyo. It was an IS unit, the White Knight, that stopped every single missile in just five minutes. But no one knows how they were fired in the first place."

Silver then projected a bunch of images from her helmet, ranging from different nuclear silos to random ground wires. It then rearranged them in a pattern that mapped the flow of the weapons and wires, to a central collage. A mountain blanketed with villas and trees, on an island. Within a villa was an extremely convoluted process to access a hidden lab. On a desk were papers of codes for every missile currently in existence.

And in another image was a silhouette of a female with rabbit ears, grabbing those codes and inputting them into the computer.

"Rabbit Girl?!" Sokoto was utterly shocked, "It was Rabbit Girl the whole f*ing time?!"

Silver nodded. Then, she showed an image of a red alert, followed by another of a dogfight between it and IS Representative Contenders, many of whom they've all seen before.

"You had severely classified information!" Autumn said, "That's why the world was freaking out when you suddenly moved without a pilot!"

"No, that's just a cover up," Sokoto gritted, "What I wanna know is, why would she do this?!"

"To show off her classy toys," Madoka hissed, "When she introduced the IS, no one took her seriously. So, she worked her hacking magic and put on a little show for the whole world to see."

"And your previous pilot found out," Sokoto finished solving the equation, "So, they killed her. This rattled you into being because you and her shared an intense bond. And so, you fought to finish the mission, bringing you here."

Silver nodded. She crossed her stomach, showing everyone where she was struck down. Then, she drew a heart shape over her left bosom, marking the location of the core. Whoever finished her off missed by a long shot. Once her barrier was depleted and her body was penetrated, she activated her Safe Mode. This kept her core intact, but rendered her inactive until someone came to reactivate her.

Silver cleared its screens. She sat ccas and stared very intently at the fire, and dunked some more wood and a tiny laser, bringing it to a blaze.

"I'm with the Gospel," Madoka growled, "They have to pay."

"No argument here," Autumn agreed, "but I don't think our pitchforks will reach Tabane...or any other pilot."

"Not alone," Sokoto suddenly remembered something and started running, "Everyone follow me!"

Without a clue where to, the trio darted after the renegade, who was following a series of negative auras he first sensed when Autumn dragged him into the forest. They trudged through the trees and thick grass that weren't caught in the rampage until he found it. The source of all his major headaches.

"There," he pointed to a compound tussled within the greenery, "by that impression."

Madoka, Autumn, and Silver came to and peered over the bushes. And they all regretted it.

It was a male prison camp. Very well hidden within the confines of the trees and mountains, made completely undetectable by anything technology. Here, men and boys were made to provide lumber for the region, using only saws, axes, red and black checkered tops, and blue jeans. Their only role here was to fulfill the ultimate woman fantasies, by becoming an object of desire. Whoever falls behind is subject to extreme humiliation. Whoever meets quotas has their life force drained, until they are too weak to even walk. But no matter what happened, they were all made to feel worthless. And this was their home for the rest of their lives. Such was the way of the underbelly of society.

"What in the..." Autumn was appalled, "The old Phantom Task never said anything about this..."

"I could get down with the lumberjack getup," Madoka said, "but this is..."

"...overkill," Sokoto muttered, "Look over th-"

A van drove up to the gates. A woman stepped out and yanked the door open. Someone in the car kicked a boy off and into the fist of the woman.

"That's the boy I was talking about, the one from my image!" Sokoto hissed, "But where's his mom?!"

"If he's here alone, then..." Madoka said as they all saw the boy suffocate into unconsciousness. Then, they dragged him in to do Who-Knows-What.

"Between psychotic behavior and murderous tendencies," Autumn whispered as she witnessed a man being converted into a toilet, "this would be more than enough to make me rethink everything I've ever done..."

"How come I'm only finding out about this now?" Madoka said as she saw a teenage boy get sex'd to death.

"Thy hands be stained with the blood of thine own kin," Sokoto threw away his sanity, "And now, thou shalt know the wrath of the human life."

"We're going to attack that camp?" Madoka threw hers away too.

"Not just the camp," so did Autumn, "Look who's guarding it," she pointed to Mt. Fuji.

Silver changed her sky blue color scheme to crimson red. She then displayed a study of Mt. Fuji, an active volcano, and a news article, containing a statement from Tabane Shinonono herself, stating that she will personally deal with the renegade.

"As if we needed any more reason to let ourselves go of our inhibitions," Madoka growled, then turned to Sokoto, "so what's the plan?" And everyone turned to him.

"Silver and I will deal with Rabbit Girl," Sokoto commanded, "You two jump into the camp and live stream everything to the world."

"What about Fuji-San?" Autumn hissed.

"Leave that to me," Sokoto said, "And whatever you do, stay in the camp until I say you can come back."

"Understood," Madoka and Autumn said.

"How's everyone's energy?" Sokoto asked.

The Black Knight, Shinomure, and Silverio Gospel all showed full energy reserves and shield strength.

"Go now," Sokoto said, "If you get caught, f*** everything and wing it."

Madoka and Autumn left and snuck their way towards the camp. Silver stood up and looked at Sokoto, giving off an unsure aura.

"I'm fine," Sokoto walked back to the tree, "I just needed a way to let loose for a while."

Silver reverted to her default blue scheme.

"Well, how else am I gonna get my point across?" Sokoto said, "If I learned anything, it's that people don't learn easy. They've become immune to all that peace on earth crap. They're like selective sponges."

Silver cocked her head sideways.

"It'll take forever to explain properly," Sokoto said, "Right now, we have to prepare for Rabbit Girl's inevitable rampage."

Silver displayed images of Crescendo, Schwarzer Regen, and Silvia, all taken by local satellites.

"Dunno if we can get her back," Sokoto responded, "But we're going to try."

Silver nodded, then opened her radar. This time, there were twenty one red dots, coming from the south end. She grasped his hand and wore the locket. He stared up at the midnight sky, preparing his heart for the fight that must happen in order to put everything to rest once and for all. He tightened his grip on Silver and fill the gaps between their fingers. They stared at the starry canvas, taking note of the few stars that seemed to grow. It's them. The ones that will represent the will of Japan in this one fight alone.

Sokoto and Silver stood their ground, waiting for their first strike. "Well, Japan," they hummed, "the price to banish us has tripled."

 _At last, the deciding fight is about to get underway. Tabane Shinonono, the creator of the Infinite Stratos, has decided to take matters into her own_ _hands to settle the score once and for all._

 _Laura Bodewig, the woman who has tailed the renegade for the entire rampage, and Chelsea Blackett, who seeks to finish what her former friend could not, join the fight, along with every able-bodied Academy staff member and soldier of the German Elite unit._

 _Madoka and Anna dig deep into the sudden man-thrall conspiracy to find answers, but they have no idea what secrets await them._

 _Sokoto and the Gospel, hands intertwined, now face the prospect of their final fight together. Can they hope to emerge victorious, or is this the one fight from which there is no escape for either side?_

 _The fate of the Chūbu region...on the season finale of Infinite Stratos...Virus._


End file.
